X-MEN FIRST CLASS charts the epic beginning of the X-Men saga, and reveals a secret history of famous global events. Before mutants had revealed themselves to the world, and before Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Not archenemies, they were instead at first the closest of friends, working together with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to prevent nuclear Armageddon. In the process, a grave rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men.

The trailer also unfolds a video of former President John F. Kennedy, establishing the film’s place in history at the dawn of the atomic age.

Among the many notable scenes are glimpses of Emma Frost (January Jones), Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) and what appears to be the transformation of Beast (Nicholas Hoult) into his furry incarnation.

Xavier and Lehnsherr appear in their early bumblebee-themed X-Men costumes, while Angel (Zoe Kravitz) unfurls her wings and we get an oh-so-brief glimpse of the red Azazel, Nightcrawler’s father (Jason Flemyng) doing his teleportation thing. There’s also a shot of Havok (Lucas Till) discharging a red stream of cosmic energy from his chest.

Oh, and the Blackbird (a.k.a. X-Jet) makes an appearance too, with Beast fully transformed at the stick. Magneto shows his power levitating a nuclear submarine.